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Cold Storage
It started with a simple decision. The right one, Katie thought. She still did.
As office manager, she was in charge of decorating for the annual Christmas party. It wasn’t much. It never was, but she wanted to give her employees the holiday cheer they deserved. They were like family and Katie cared for them as she did her own little ones.
Which was why she made the choice. How could she have said no?
But, it had put into motion forces she didn’t expect. Her simple act of kindness was devolving into a life of shame. She was supposed to be handing out snacks at her kids’ games and smiles at the plant. Instead, she was lying to her police officer husband and betraying the ruthless man she called her boss.
Her small town was becoming a prison of her own making and any chance of escape was shrinking by the second. Stuck at a crossroad of fear and panic, Katie has to do something.
And quick.
Or her next secret may be her last.
As office manager, she was in charge of decorating for the annual Christmas party. It wasn’t much. It never was, but she wanted to give her employees the holiday cheer they deserved. They were like family and Katie cared for them as she did her own little ones.
Which was why she made the choice. How could she have said no?
But, it had put into motion forces she didn’t expect. Her simple act of kindness was devolving into a life of shame. She was supposed to be handing out snacks at her kids’ games and smiles at the plant. Instead, she was lying to her police officer husband and betraying the ruthless man she called her boss.
Her small town was becoming a prison of her own making and any chance of escape was shrinking by the second. Stuck at a crossroad of fear and panic, Katie has to do something.
And quick.
Or her next secret may be her last.
390 pages, Paperback
Published November 19, 2021
10 people are currently reading
21 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 9, 2021
Cold Storage by Pete Bauer is a tale of morally grey actions by ethically grey characters.
Katie Cage is an assistant to the owner of a major meatpacking business in the small, dying town of Tyler. She manages the assorted personnel, the advances of her ruthless boss, Dale Harris, and the accounts. When an employee needs time off with pay to help her child through his last year as he dies from cancer, Harris declines to offer any help. Katie makes a bold choice that sends her on a spiraling fall from grace.
Katie is an intriguing character. She looks out for people, nurtures them, and looks to do good for everyone. Her husband is a town cop who is excellent at his job; he's even excellent at being a reliable husband. Still, something is missing in their marriage, missing from Katie's life. The thrill of laundering money and prescription drugs seems to be a way for Katie to deal with the mundanity of what her life has become.
Time jumps make for a quick but realistic pace. This woman's life doesn't fall apart all at once, though fall apart it does. Instead, Katie's spiral into the worst depths of hell starts on that one Christmas Eve, taking her through months of blackouts and drug use, stints in prison, and clumsy mistakes that threaten to put her back behind bars.
Bauer handles dialogue and character progression with aplomb. Cold Storage is a progression of mistakes amping up to one of the worst mistakes a person can make in their life. Aspects of the story felt like Katie Cage was a less innocent Marion Crane (played by Janet Leigh in the movie, Psycho). Katie was trying to do something good, unlike Marion Crane, who was simply trying to marry the man she loved. But the power gets to Katie, not a psycho running a roadside motel.
Still, Katie Cage had aspects of the innocent Marion in her. Her desire for a better life, one without the monotony of cleaning the kitchen floor and washing the clothes, of having unfulfilling sex with her husband, pleasant as he was, of doing more than scraping by, made Katie think she was invincible. She overindulged and paid the price.
Cold Storage reads quickly but doesn't lack intrigue or character. It's a wonderful, almost lighthearted, thriller worth adding to your TBR.
Katie Cage is an assistant to the owner of a major meatpacking business in the small, dying town of Tyler. She manages the assorted personnel, the advances of her ruthless boss, Dale Harris, and the accounts. When an employee needs time off with pay to help her child through his last year as he dies from cancer, Harris declines to offer any help. Katie makes a bold choice that sends her on a spiraling fall from grace.
Katie is an intriguing character. She looks out for people, nurtures them, and looks to do good for everyone. Her husband is a town cop who is excellent at his job; he's even excellent at being a reliable husband. Still, something is missing in their marriage, missing from Katie's life. The thrill of laundering money and prescription drugs seems to be a way for Katie to deal with the mundanity of what her life has become.
Time jumps make for a quick but realistic pace. This woman's life doesn't fall apart all at once, though fall apart it does. Instead, Katie's spiral into the worst depths of hell starts on that one Christmas Eve, taking her through months of blackouts and drug use, stints in prison, and clumsy mistakes that threaten to put her back behind bars.
Bauer handles dialogue and character progression with aplomb. Cold Storage is a progression of mistakes amping up to one of the worst mistakes a person can make in their life. Aspects of the story felt like Katie Cage was a less innocent Marion Crane (played by Janet Leigh in the movie, Psycho). Katie was trying to do something good, unlike Marion Crane, who was simply trying to marry the man she loved. But the power gets to Katie, not a psycho running a roadside motel.
Still, Katie Cage had aspects of the innocent Marion in her. Her desire for a better life, one without the monotony of cleaning the kitchen floor and washing the clothes, of having unfulfilling sex with her husband, pleasant as he was, of doing more than scraping by, made Katie think she was invincible. She overindulged and paid the price.
Cold Storage reads quickly but doesn't lack intrigue or character. It's a wonderful, almost lighthearted, thriller worth adding to your TBR.
April 19, 2023
Her first decision sounds like something I might have done in a similar position but I couldn’t begin to deal with everything else she went through. What a thought provoking book as well as a page turner.
December 11, 2023
Very good read
January 26, 2025
Great read!!!
A wonderful who dun it! Kept me guessing and held my interest until the very end!Good character development and a real page turner. A book is good when you spend more time reading it before you realize just how much time has past. It was fun to read and really enjoyed it.
A wonderful who dun it! Kept me guessing and held my interest until the very end!Good character development and a real page turner. A book is good when you spend more time reading it before you realize just how much time has past. It was fun to read and really enjoyed it.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews